08KYIV965, UKRAINE: GONGADZE KILLERS APPEAL TO SUPREME COURT,

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C O N F I D E N T I A L KYIV 000965
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/24/2016
TAGS: PHUMPGOVPINRSOCISCULUP
SUBJECT: UKRAINE: GONGADZE KILLERS APPEAL TO SUPREME COURT,
WIDOW PLANS CIVIL CASE AGAINST INTERIOR MINISTRY
Classified By: Political Counselor Kent Logsdon for reasons 1.4 (b) and
(d).
¶1. (C) Summary. Valentyna Telychenko, the attorney for the
widow of slain journalist Georgiy Gongadze, told EmbOff that
she was satisfied with the March 15 convictions of three
former police officers, but that she would request reduced
sentences for two of the defendants when they make their
final appeal to the Supreme Court in June. Telychenko said
that widow Myroslava Gongadze would continue to push for an
investigation into who ordered the murder and that she plans
to file a civil case against the Ministry of Interior.
¶2. (C) We view the conviction of the three men involved in
the murder as a positive step, but agree that doubts about
the GoU's commitment to a full resolution of this case will
linger until those who ordered the killings are brought to
justice. Post will continue to track progress in Myroslava
Gongadze's effort to find those who ordered the murder and
her planned civil case. End Summary and Comment.
¶3. (C) Valentyna Telychenko, the attorney for the widow of
slain journalist Georgiy Gongadze, told Emboff on May 20 that
she was satisfied with the recent conviction of three former
police officers for their involvement in the murder, but that
widow Myroslava Gongadze will continue to push for a broader
investigation into who ordered the killing in 2000.
Telychenko said that the trial of the three defendants was
thorough and correct from a legal standpoint. She confirmed
that the three defendants had appealed their convictions to
the Supreme Court - the court of last instance - and their
appeal will be heard on June 17. She said she would request
that the Supreme Court reduce the sentences for two of the
three defendants - in line with her sentencing request before
the lower court's verdict in March - but would ask to keep
the 14-year sentence for Mykola Protasov who showed no signs
of remorse or willingness to accept responsibility for his
role in the murder.
¶4. (C) Telychenko reiterated her position that the
Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) should open a case against
former SBU officer Major Mykola Melnychenko to determine if
his recordings of conversations in then-President Kuchma's
office can be submitted as evidence in a court of law. He
could be charged for illegally making the recordings in the
first place, she explained, and they are crucial to further
investigating the role of senior figures such as Socialist
Party leader Oleksandr Moroz and former head of Kuchma's
Presidential Administration Viktor Medvedchuk. She expressed
some doubt that Melnychenko still has the original recordings
in his possession and believed that he did not work alone in
making the recordings, with possible help from Russian
special services. She vowed to keep the case in the public's
eye and said that Myroslava Gongadze plans to file a civil
suit against the Ministry of Interior in which, in contrast
to a criminal case, can charge it as an organization with
"institutional responsibility" for Gongadze's murder and seek
financial compensation.
¶5. (U) Visit Embassy Kyiv's classified website:
www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/kyiv.
Taylor

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